


Something Injectable

by PennedMar



Category: GameHouse Original Stories, Heart's Medicine (Video Games)
Genre: Drug Use, Gen, drug mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-04
Updated: 2017-12-04
Packaged: 2019-02-10 17:57:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12917190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PennedMar/pseuds/PennedMar
Summary: I just wrote this an exercise, and somehow it led me to "mucking up" Heart's Medicine in turn.Anyway, I tried to get some perspective on Daniel's actions in "Heart's Medicine: Time To Heal" and came up with this thing, so-





	Something Injectable

He was well versed with such substances.  
His medical work necessitated it, after all.  
Day by day, he dealt with the inner troubles of Snuggford’s residents.  
It was rewarding work, just not the type for softer sorts.

Those who came to "Little Creek" didn’t on good terms.  
They sought out medical treatment, for all sort of aliments.  
Though he prided himself on healing them, it left him little time for himself.  
In turn, he hadn’t been able to “treat” his own ailments.

His were of a more personal sort, rooted in his conflicting emotions.  
He’d learned them by way of his father, a rather particular sort.  
At once, he shifted from joy to distaste to condescension.  
Though he knew Father meant well, it still pained him within.   
It seemed like nothing he did could quite win his approval.

Aching to “win him over”, he just threw himself into his work.  
Their situation only grew strained following Father’s heart attack.   
He’d been considerably weakened afterwards, leaving "Little Creek" in his son’s care.

While he was flattered by Father’s “gift”, it gave him more responsibilities.  
What’d been before only grew more intense now.  
He still strove to please his father, to prove himself fully.  
As such, he undertook a massive renovation of "Little Creek".  
He planned it to be his “magnum opus” of sorts.

However, the added work soon overwhelmed his senses.  
All seemed impossible then, taxing his strained resources.  
As the days dragged on, he sought any sort of comfort.   
Even the joy he envisioned upon Father’s face wasn’t good enough now.  
An unseen urge beckoned him forth, crying for release.

Whenever he had the time, he sat back in his office.  
It’d become a time to heal, if only for a little bit.   
However, he knew such moments were fleeting.   
He’d have to return to his work, and all it demanded.  
And then what?

During one shift, he became fully aware the veins beneath his hands.  
They came under undue stress, something else he knew very well.  
He knew it by heart, that which caused it such strain.  
Aching to ease it, he imagined a needle against his flesh.  
it’d have something injectible, something to dull the pain.

He’d administered such substances to patients before.   
They were only a quick fix, albeit an utterly satisfying one.  
Such was the comforting release he craved.  
Though he cast the thought aside, it haunted him still.  
He tried to concentrate further, only for his unease to grow.

His opportunity came during an inventory check at the pharmacy.  
Ruth had called him to oversee their newest stock alongside her.  
Once they were done with their work, she told him to lock up for the night.  
She’d been called elsewhere, forcing him into yet another role.

As he sought out the light switches, he peered at the medicine surrounding him.  
Some were hidden away in plain bottles, lessening his intrigue.  
Others appeared like candy, painted in bright, glossy hues.  
Of their ilk, he knew the majority of their side effects.

Some were made to ease unpleasant symptoms, nothing more.  
However, others offered racing pleasure, a freedom of ease.  
That urge called forth again, demanding he take his own pleasure from them.  
As he fought against it, his head began to pound.  
In his shock, he knocked over some nearby bottles and needles.

As their rattle became clear, he jerked back to catch them.  
They soon rested in his grasp, their call beckoning him forth.  
He set the bottles aside then, focusing on the needles.  
They were a fresh pair, untouched by blood or injectables.  
Though they remained hollow, his curiosity rose up.

Believing they wouldn’t be “missed”, he unwrapped one.   
He then set its point against his left hand.   
It barely sank into the flesh, tickling his vein below.  
He imagined it full of medicine, that which brought others pleasure.  
However, he drifted into his fantasy, failing to notice the needle within him.

It hit a particular nerve within him, shocking him out of his haze.  
He pulled it out instantly, drawing a bit of blood with it.  
As he wiped its hole with a disinfectant patch, pain rose to the forefront.  
He felt betrayed then, chiding himself for putting such “faith” in something injectable.  
Even if the needle hadn’t been empty, it wouldn’t matter.

All in all, it’d just be a temporary fix.  
It wouldn’t be enough to truly fix his problems, all said.  
Defeated by his thoughts, he readied himself to close up once and for all.  
As he walked forward, he noticed the pill bottles from before.

Their contents were used to enhance one’s mental activity.  
He knew of their own effects, how they brought their own pleasure.  
Reeling from the needle’s shock, he thought to patients who’d taken them.  
Some reacted with glee, while others became calm and focused.

However, none had felt quite the shock he had earlier.  
After all, such pills were taken by mouth, not by needle.  
Though his doubts remained, so did his inner strain.  
They pleaded him forth, begging for comfort once more.

Dulled by his conflicting thoughts, he picked up one of the bottles.  
Its weight rested comfortably in his palm, soothing in a way.  
As he clutched it, his heart raced with possibility.  
He shook the bottle, rattling its enticing contents.

They were like candy to him now, offering him such “delicious” pleasure.  
And much like such sweets, he fell captive to their allure.  
With a twist of the bottle, he revealed them to his eager gaze.  
A pill soon fell into his hand, of which he popped it into his mouth.

As it melted on his tongue, he felt himself growing “lighter”.  
All seemed so distant from him, as though he were invincible.   
Perhaps this was what he needed after all.  
Wrong nor right didn’t register for him then.  
Temporary or not, it served its purpose then.  
All he needed was a comfort he could take readily, something so very useful.


End file.
